SPECIAL OCCASION Mayo County Council Cathaoirleach, Cllr Seamus Weir cutting the tape to officially open Radharc an tSáilín housing development in Belmullet on Thursday. Also included are Cllr Tim Quinn, Cllr Gerry Coyle, Cllr Michael Holmes, Fr Michael Harrison, Padraic Brogan, Mayo County Council, Sheila McDonald, Mayo County Council, Mary Lally, Mayo County Council, Martin Keating, CEO, Teresa Geraghty, residents’ representative, builder Gerry McAndrew, residents and locals. Pic: John O’Grady
New housing developments bring life back to Erris villages
Anton McNulty
IT WAS a day of celebration for two Erris communities last week when two new housing developments were officially opened by the Cathaoirleach of Mayo County Council, Cllr Seamus Weir.
It was a proud day for the residents of Cranoc Lár in Corclough and Radharc na tSáilín in Binghamstown, who had the two estates in pristine condition for the day with flags and bunting decorating the houses. All of the houses on both estates are full, according to Padraig Brogan of Mayo County Council. Indeed, such was the demand for housing in the area that both estates could have been filled twice over.
The Corclough estate, which was blessed by Fr Kevin Hegarty, contains nine houses and was completed last December at a cost of €1.7 million. The scheme was completed by the Deane brothers and is located behind Corclough National School, which allowed some school children to be present at the opening. This was acknowledged by Cllr Tim Quinn who said the new houses allowed people to live and raise a family in their native village.
“This is a great day and this shows that Corclough is coming alive and it is great to see a rural village like it thriving. This is a proud day for Corclough and it is great to see the good numbers in the school, which is thriving. To see this development gives great encouragement to local representatives and to the people of Corclough,” he said.
Cllr Gerry Coyle said the opening of the estate was a happy occasion for everyone who lived there and the development showed what could be achieved by different groups working together. He said the new homes will bring families into the village and said that the children were the future of any community. He also praised the work of the Council officials in the Belmullet offices and wished everyone the best in their new homes.
The development in Binghamstown consists of ten houses and cost €1.35m to complete. It was blessed by local curate Fr Michael Harrison. In his address, Cllr Seamus Weir said he was delighted to be present to officially open the estate in such a beautiful location. He thanked the McAndrew family for providing the site and praised the work of the contractor James Mangan.
Cllr Michael Holmes said it was a proud day for Binghamstown and said this type of development was critical for small rural communities. He said he was glad to see young people with families moving into the houses and added that they were the backbone of the community.
Teresa Geraghty, who spoke on behalf of the residents, said that everyone was delighted with their houses and thanked the Council for all the help they had given them.
Mr Martin Keating, Housing Officer with Mayo County Council, said that the type of development in Corclough and Binghamstown allowed people to come and live in their home villages and revitalise the communities. He said that both schemes had surpassed the Council’s expectations, and he thanked the contractors for their work.
